MIRI – Puncak Borneo MP Datuk Willie Mongin has made a mockery of the Dewan Rakyat after defecting to Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) about a week after voting for constitutional amendments on party-hopping, said Miri MP Dr Teo Yu Keng.
“This latest case of an MP defecting has made a mockery of our Dewan Rakyat. He was one of the MPs who voted for the bill. PBB MPs also voted for it and the minister in charge was from PBB (Datuk Seri Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar).
“And just a week later, this party-hopping happened. This is like making us all a laughing stock. There is no more honour,” the PKR lawmaker told The Vibes today.
Dr Teo added that the bill still needs to be tabled to the Dewan Negara before it is gazetted as law and enforced.
“So, the Puncak Borneo MP could party-hop and PBB readily accepted him.”
PBB is the lynchpin of state ruling coalition Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), which is an ally of Barisan Nasional and Perikatan Nasional.
Mongin won the Puncak Borneo constituency in the 2018 general election under the PKR banner. In 2020, he defected to Bersatu during the Sheraton Move that saw the fall of the Pakatan Harapan federal government.
Two days ago, PBB announced that it had accepted Mongin, who applied to join the party after quitting Bersatu, as a member.
Yesterday, Sarawak DAP chairman and Stampin MP Chong Chieng Jen had said Mongin should resign from his seat before joining another party as it was “morally wrong” to do otherwise.
Of Sarawak’s 31 parliamentary seats, GPS holds 19.
Sarawak Bersatu is also demanding that Mongin relinquish his deputy plantation industries and commodities minister post.
State chapter chairman Jaziri Alkaf Abdillah Suffian said in a press statement that Mongin cannot be allowed to retain his post despite joining PBB.
“Without Bersatu, he would not have been a deputy minister. Now that he is no longer with Bersatu, the post must be returned to Bersatu for us to nominate a new person to take over.”
Mongin had said his decision to join PBB was made based on a collective opinion of voters in his constituency and hoped for continuous support from the voters. – The Vibes, August 9, 2022
